


String of Pearls

by perphesone



Category: Star Trek: The Original Series
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Romantic Fluff, Shore Leave
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-20
Updated: 2019-12-20
Packaged: 2021-02-25 23:42:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,168
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21873874
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/perphesone/pseuds/perphesone
Summary: After a disastrous diplomatic encounter, Christine and Nyota get a rare chance to relax on extended shore leave - a whole week spent together on a moon orbiting the planet Oberon IV.written for a tumblr prompt from thesadchicken: "Uhura/christine, fluff? they're on an alien planet and "oh gosh it's beautiful but not as beautiful as her"
Relationships: Christine Chapel/Nyota Uhura
Comments: 8
Kudos: 24
Collections: Women of Star Trek





	String of Pearls

**Author's Note:**

  * For [thesadchicken](https://archiveofourown.org/users/thesadchicken/gifts).



One Earth week.

One _full_ Earth week of shore leave while the _Enterprise_ underwent routine repairs and maintenance at the nearest Federation space station. Most of the crew were staying in closer proximity, but the captain had given a select few – namely those who had come under the line of harsh verbal fire during their disastrous encounter with the Plaktian delegates – permission to go wherever they wanted. As long as they made it back on time, that is.

Christine sighed as she dipped her bare feet into the cool water over the edge of the dock. She felt her frayed nerves starting to soothe. She and Nyota had been two of the lucky ones. _Or unlucky,_ she thought, remembering the Plaktian princess who had screamed at her for what felt like hours for mispronouncing one of the syllables in the fifth word of her title.

She smiled down at her toes, feeling a burst of pride. _She_ may not have been able to speak perfect Plaktian, but she was certain that Nyota had pronounced her words without a stumble when she came to Christine’s defense. Christine hadn’t understood a single word of Nyota’s reply to the princess, but judging by the look on the princess’s face, the message had been _very_ well articulated.

Today – they were calling it Monday – was their first evening staying in a beautiful lakeside cottage, tucked into the ancient hollow of an impact crater on a moon in the Oberon system. The lake was alive with the harmonious sounds of the singing algae that wreathed the shore. Farther out, the water was clear and glossy. Countless other pale pink moons that orbited Oberon IV danced across the surface of the lake, reflections gleaming like a string of scattered pearls.

The thud of rapid footsteps striking the wooden dock startled Christine out of her reverie.

 _“Ready or not,”_ she heard Nyota call, _“here I come!”_

Laughter bubbled out of her. She practically felt a breeze as Nyota charged past her, and she _definitely_ felt the cold splash of water when Nyota dove off the edge of the dock and into the lake. She sputtered and brought up her hands to push her wet bangs out of her face.

She watched the foamy trail that Nyota carved out in the water as she swam to the middle of the lake and back. This side of the moon didn’t receive any direct sunlight from the Oberon star, but the field of mirror-bright moons surrounding them ensured that their week would be spent in a perpetual romantic twilight. The rosy glow that filtered through the atmosphere emphasized the warm tones of Nyota’s copper skin and deepened its contrast with her hair, which looked almost midnight blue instead of black in the multiple moonlight.

Knowing Nyota’s eye for style, she’d picked out her lemon yellow swimsuit specifically to complement the natural color scheme of their little crater.

When Nyota circled back around to Christine, she pulled herself up onto the dock and tossed her head to shake out her hair. Though she usually kept it straightened and coiffed or tightly and elegantly twisted back from her face while she was on duty, she wasn’t the type to let a hairstyle keep her from having a good swim. She knew that Christine always liked to see her with her natural curls, too.

Christine leaned in and kissed her on the lips, feeling the cool water droplets that clung to her skin. “How’s the water?” she asked, leaning her forehead affectionately against Nyota’s.

“Almost perfect,” purred Nyota.

“Almost?”

Nyota sat back and clicked her tongue, shaking her head minutely as she surveyed the lake. “It’s just missing something.”

“Like…what?” Christine asked cautiously.

“Oh, you know…” Nyota gestured broadly, feigning innocence. “Just one _Starfleet nurse!”_

Christine shrieked and braced herself, squeezing her eyes shut against the rush of cold water she knew would be closing around her any second.

Except Nyota hadn’t pushed her.

When Christine opened her eyes, Nyota was stretched out on her back, practically cackling. Christine’s admonishment died on her lips as she watched Nyota’s belly shake with laughter. When her gaze wandered up to Nyota’s beautiful smile, she caught herself smiling, too.

Nyota finally sighed and relaxed, letting out the last puff of delighted laughter. She opened her eyes and they glittered like gemstones. “Seriously,” said Nyota, “will you come swim with me?”

Christine bit her lip reluctantly. “I’m not wearing a bathing suit,” she said.

Nyota fixed her with a deadpan look. Okay, yes, it was a lousy excuse and she knew it. She started laughing herself when Nyota sat up and started to wriggle out of her own bathing suit without a hint of self-consciousness or embarrassment.

“Fine, fine, fine,” she muttered, pulling her short dress off over her head and turning around so that Nyota could unfasten her bra for her. She slipped her underwear down her legs, pulling one foot through and then the other, grinning the entire time. The atmosphere was warm, but she still felt her bare skin start to prickle.

Nyota hugged her from behind, running her hands up and down Christine’s arms. She pressed a kiss to the back of Christine’s neck. “Now get in,” she teased, “or else I really will push you.”

Christine turned around in Nyota’s arms and kissed her again. “Mmm,” she sighed. “But it’s so nice up here. It’s so… dry.”

She felt Nyota melt into their kisses, sucking her bottom lip and teasing at the corners of her mouth. Her arms lowered from around Christine. Apart from their faces, the only parts of them that were touching were their knees. Despite that, Christine felt her entire body warm up.

Just when she thought she might be in the clear, Nyota pulled away. Though her expression was as enticing as ever, she said exactly what Christine was hoping not to hear. “Who wants to be dry?” she asked playfully. She reached out and tapped Christine on the knee. “Tag,” she whispered. “You’re it.”

Then, she jumped back into the water with an unrepentant splash. She was so elegant when she moved through the water that she could’ve been mistaken for a mermaid, or even a Qalarian. By comparison, Christine felt like a manatee. But she couldn’t deny Nyota any more than she already had – and she didn’t want to, really. She knew that Nyota wasn’t there to judge her swimming technique.

Closing her eyes and thinking about all the warm, comfortable hours she would be able to spend curled up in bed with Nyota once they got _out_ of the water, she scooted up to the edge of the dock and dropped herself into the lake.

Before long, she forgot about her self-conscious tendencies. She lost herself in the games that she and Nyota played in the water, the fleeting delight whenever they touched, and, best of all, the wide smile that bloomed on Nyota’s face whenever they surfaced and met each other’s eyes.


End file.
